Be your genius self, love your work, have more fun

About

I love the human zoo

When I was about five, my dad took me to the circus. We sat up in the stands with all the other spectators. When the elephants were brought in, my dad exclaimed ”Look at the elephants!” I wasn’t interested in the silly elephants. I was busy staring at all the people.

And guess what? Nothing has changed. People — and all our strange and beautiful ways, desires, conflicts, paradoxes and creative styles — continue to fascinate and consume me.

What makes us tick? Why do we struggle being the kinds of people we want to be? How do we become our true selves?

And how on earth do we get ourselves out of being stuck when we want to be anywhere but here?

Philosophy

Our lives are defined by a collection of stories we’ve chosen to tell ourselves based on numerous events. But what if they hold us back? Or aren’t entirely true? Sometimes we can be prisoners of our stories. Just as a story is written, it can be re-written. Once we change and re-write parts of our story, we change.

Language and word choice are the supporting beams of our stories. Catch those words and challenge them. Are they demeaning? Motiviating? Uncommitted? Ambitious? Once you start to pay attention to your daily life language and word choice, you tap into a powerful tool that can change your story from the inside out.

There are boundless opportunities for work-life satisfaction and fulfillment once you give yourself the green light to go for it.

Getting from the stuck place to that flow space can seem impossible, but that’s why we have creative natures: to reinvent stories, bash away at old beliefs, and do some rewriting to forge ahead.

A feeling is not the truth. You may feel like a failure, but it’s just a feeling. Think about it.

It’s in our nature to be creative — whether it’s through painting, dog walking or crunching numbers. Remember, “creative” is about creating — a complex spreadsheet, a new life, a laugh among friends, a business, you name it. Creative expression gives life purpose, meaning and joy.

I believe that accessing the fertile soil of your imagination can get you unstuck and moving forward into brilliant new territory. Your imagination helps you be your genius true self, doing the work you love, feeling fulfilled and having a damn good time in the process.

I want people to believe: I Can Do It. Whatever the end-goal of your personal “it” is. I especially love “We can do it!”

This is just a note to say: Yes, I’ve had my ass kicked from here to kingdom come in the search for fulfillment, the Right Career, my True Self, my calling, life purpose — all that crap. It’s good crap though. Hard, confusing, frustrating, sob-inducing, curious, awe-inspiring, surprising. It’s a rich adventure. What I’ve learned is this: stay with it, work with it, dive into your story and be willing to face it and re-tell it. Use your imagination to help you though and you’ll come out the other end knowing yourself, being yourself, doing the work you love, being able to transition and change more gracefully the next time you hit the crossroads (because you will) — and the best part: feeling more free, having more fun and doing the kind of work you love, in the way you most love.